Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) Given “Strong-Buy” Rating at Raymond James

Raymond James reissued their strong-buy rating on shares of Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. Raymond James currently has a $60.00 price target on the semiconductor company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $95.00.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Microchip Technology from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Microchip Technology from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com raised Microchip Technology from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Microchip Technology in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Microchip Technology from $71.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.11.

Microchip Technology Stock Performance

MCHP opened at $51.89 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $58.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.26. The stock has a market cap of $27.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 92.66 and a beta of 1.50. Microchip Technology has a 1-year low of $50.21 and a 1-year high of $100.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Microchip Technology (NASDAQ:MCHP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.15). Microchip Technology had a net margin of 6.49% and a return on equity of 12.41%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Microchip Technology will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Microchip Technology Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Microchip Technology’s payout ratio is 325.00%.

Institutional Trading of Microchip Technology

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 39.3% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 11,093,007 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $636,184,000 after buying an additional 3,131,807 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Microchip Technology by 9,901.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,857,654 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $163,886,000 after acquiring an additional 2,829,082 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Microchip Technology by 30.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,347,643 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $264,430,000 after purchasing an additional 776,408 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Microchip Technology by 20.1% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,751,987 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $220,957,000 after purchasing an additional 460,697 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Microchip Technology in the third quarter valued at $27,744,000. 91.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Microchip Technology

Microchip Technology Incorporated engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of smart, connected, and secure embedded control solutions in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company offers general purpose 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit mixed-signal microcontrollers; 32-bit embedded mixed-signal microprocessors; and specialized microcontrollers for automotive, industrial, computing, communications, lighting, power supplies, motor control, human machine interface, security, wired connectivity, and wireless connectivity applications.